Unofficial news and tips about Google

March 29, 2007

Google Maps Shows Funny Directions

It's not the first time when Google Maps shows strange directions. This time, if you want to go from Stanford to Stockholm, Google recommends to "swim across the Atlantic Ocean" (only 3,462 miles).

Last month, Google Maps transformed a short walk into a journey of 18 minutes. "For most people, the journey from the Shelbourne Hotel at 200 Sussex Street to Google's Sydney headquarters across the road at 201 Sussex Street would be a 30-step, 30-second trip. But according to Google's new mapping service, the recommended route would see you take a 10.4-kilometre scenic detour that involves crossing the Harbour Bridge twice," reported Sydney Morning Herald in February.

According to gMaps, it takes 29 days to swim the 3,463 miles of the Atlantic ocean. Thats a rate of 5 mi/hr, traffic permitting (hehe). In contrast the world record for Mens 1500 meter freestyle is 15min and 15 sec held by Thomas Lurz of Germany. That is a rate of about 3.7 mi/hr. Anyone up for a swim? =P

1) These are DRIVING directions, not WALKING directions. So Google Mapes take into account one-way roads.2) U-turns appear where it thinks the road is a divided highway, so you cannot simply turn left, you need to go to the place where the divider ends, do a U-turn, and go back to destination.

Sorry, WeshaTheLeopard, but you're wrong. The infinite U-Turns* was a bug. I didn't include the full screenshot, but there were 70 or more consecutive U-Turns. The directions have been fixed and look much better.

*U-turn = performing a 180 degree rotation in order to reverse direction of travel.

OK, 70 U-turns is a little too much, true. But sometimes U-turns are justified. Let me show you. I choose the route that I can recall for sure, and though it's slightly off, it still illustrate the idea.

The question is: why taking Diehl-Park-Shuman route when you could have taken Diehl-Washington-Shuman route which is 50% shorter?

The answer is: Shuman is a divided street. You can turn left from Washington onto Shuman, but you can't turn left off Shuman into the parking lot. Google suggests one way of overcoming this. Another would be: turn right onto Washington; turn left onto Shuman; go to the intersection with Park; do a U-turn; drive on Shuman in the opposite direction till you hit the destination.

The funniest part however: Shuman is NOT divided between Washington and destination (zoom in on sat picture); the divider starts a little further down the road. :)

The first picture looks like an April Fools prank (We are close to April 1st), while the others look like bugs or necesary upgrades (choose between driving or walking directions).

Last week I had my run-in with one of these "glitches":I asked Maps to get me the driving directions from home to ah Hotel on the other side of the island (I live in Puerto Rico). I'm sure it generated a map with the shortest distance, but it took me through a panoramic road with a lot of hills and curves, instead of taking me through the express way. It took me an additional hour or more to get to my destination. Also, being this road part of a tourist atraction with a lot of shops on the way, traffic was heavy.

The first one was a glitch Danielle not an april fools joke :-). Try getting directions from New York, New York to Paris, France. Instruction 23 tell's you to swim nearly 2,500 miles across the ocaean LOL.

don't be so daft. of course it is a joke. it cannot possibly be a glitch! did you not bother to read the word SWIM right there??? how did that word pop up in a DRIVING instruction? loool@the guy trying to be smart by saying it's a glitch! hahahahaha!!!

I found some funny directions when I was searching for an indian restaurant near some place in washington,DC.34th direction was 34. Swim across the Atlantic Ocean Entering United States (Massachusetts) - 3,462 mi

Even I found one funny direction when I was searching for an indian restaurant in DC.34th direction was .. 34. Swim across the Atlantic Ocean Entering United States (Massachusetts) 3,462 mi29 days 0 hours

Why does Google assume everyone drives. In a place like inner London, more people are on foot - few drive. Yet there doesn't seem to be an ability to get 'foot' directions... And, because, there are many one-way streets, the driving directions are likely to be very different (that's why people walk, rather than drive)....

I think most of you are missing the point. Sometimes an automated mapping system makes mistakes that are funny to a rational human mind - appreciate the humor and move on.

Why complain about google maps not offering driving directions / not avoiding tourist filled roads / etc.? If you don't like it, don't use it! From my perspective it's an amazing FREE tool that is incredibly helpful most of the time.

it says kayak when you are in drive mode and it says swim when you are in walk mode.type into directions, new lambton,australia to new york.it will tell you to drive the tip of australia then kayak to japan,drive around japan the kayak to america and drive to new york.

aw,I like how it told us to swim, kayak, etc. I also like anonymous' humour. Sometimes we make too much of nothing. Appreciate the gesture to burn a TON of calories and be ALOT thinner at our destination, or at least burn 5 calories and laugh til you need the bathroom.

I think whoever gets their panties in a twist over the directions over water is a bit thick to be honest, of course it is going to tell you to travel over the sea if you ask to go from one country to another.

It's not going to say 'part the seas like moses' or 'drop some kryptonite into the sea and create a bridge from crystals' or 'invent a teleporter' is it?

You're a bit stupid if you think you can drive from california to sweden.

Of course it's going to say 'swim' - with the intelligence level of some idiots driving their cars into seas and rivers, "because my sat-nav told me to..." At least they got the idiot out of their car first, saving emergency services and insurance companies a bundle of cash.

If i was google, I would code that - hoping some complete muppet may think twice.

YOU, MY FRIEND, IS A PARTY POOPER. Go back to your home and poop on your own toilet.

Can't these people just for few seconds of their highly intelligent life, act stupid for a while? They were just having fun. Its like, why do you call a weed smoker/stoner stupid(because they do drugs) and not to people who drinks alcohol?

These things on google maps told us to swim, just want to give a smile to our face because we searched for a non-logical query, so that is why they give a funny answer back. Its called 'easter-egg' put there by their programmer. If nobody typed words like 'swim' 'kayak' 'jetski' it won't be there at all. So why won't you call those programmer an idiot instead?

Its a happy world out there, and you, deserve not to go out from you room because you ain't worth it out here.

Now the directions from NYC, USA to Paris, France direct you to go west to Seattle, WA, then swim across Pacific to Hawaii, swim again to Asia where you are directed to drive through Asia and Europe to reach France. Too funny!